Planned Black community in Georgia draws interest for a reality TV show

Last week, nearly two dozen families in Georgia made headlines for pooling money to purchase land in a Georgia town with a vision to build a safe-haven community for Black people.

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The news garnered widespread attention, including interest from big wigs in the entertainment sphere hoping to develop a reality TV show about the forthcoming community dreamed to be Freedom, Georgia, per TMZ. Among them are production companies that have been linked to Lifetime, A&E, Oxygen and HGTV.

The group of 19 families, led by Ashley Scott and Renee Walters, bought 97 acres of land in Toomsboro, Georgia, a rural town of about 500 people, according to U.S. Census Bureau estimates, about two hours south of Atlanta.

Land purchased by the Freedom Georgia Initiative in Wilkinson County, Georiga (via CNN)

Scott, a real estate agent, said the community would be a “safe haven for people of color, for Black families in particular.”

TMZ reports that several production companies are seeking a deal with Scott and Walters, an entrepreneur, to shoot a reality series based around the company and the community members.

While nothing has been approved or finalized, it was reported that members of the planned community outlined provisions before agreeing to have a reality programming shot. One of them is having complete ownership of the footage and having final say so in the editing process.

https://twitter.com/MyWayKay_/status/1304782890228682758?s=20

This apparently is in an effort to control the narrative of program, so that they community is portrayed in a positive light.

A website for the community, known as The Freedom Georgia Initiative, has emerged. The site says that the catalyst for the community was born out of the “racial trauma, a global pandemic, and economic instabilities” for Black Americans.

It continues by saying the goal for Freedom, GA, is to create “an innovative community for environmentally sustainable-living, health & wellness, agricultural & economic development, arts & culture for generations to come.”